B. S. Sathyaprakash, Elsbach Professor of Physics at the Pennsylvania State University and Senior Associate at ICTS has been elected a fellow of the American Physical Society 'for leadership in and wide-ranging contributions to gravitational wave science.'
Professor Sathyaprakash’s research spans different aspects of gravitational-wave physics and astronomy, including the development of data analysis methods, tests of general relativity and the interface between data analysis and theoretical source modeling. The data analysis methods that he and his collaborators developed form the backbone of the search for gravitational-wave signals that LIGO and Virgo been detecting recently. He also plays a leadership role in an international effort to formulate the science case for the next generation of gravitational-wave detectors.
A graduate from the Indian Institute of Science, Professor Sathyaprakash is a close friend of the Indian gravitational-wave community. "I have been impressed by Sathya's manifold seminal contributions to gravitational-wave research. It has been a pleasure to see him in action since 1996 to provide effective leadership to build an active and vibrant group at the Cardiff University and mature to be in the group of distinguished researchers developing a global vision for gravitational-wave research in the future,” said Professor Bala Iyer, Simons Visiting Professor at ICTS and Sathyaprakash’s long-term collaborator.
The ICTS Astrophysical Relativity group enjoys a close collaboration with Professor Sathyaprakash’s group at Penn State. ICTS and Penn State have been the nodal centers of the Indo-US Joint Center for Extreme Gravity, funded by the Indo-U.S. Science & Technology Forum.